1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to enhancing sound along communication channels in multiple communication devices.
2. Background Art
Telecommunication devices are increasing in number, functionality, portability and options provided. Telephones may be interconnected by any combination of traditional telephone wires, wireless radio signals, the Internet, satellites, and the like. Devices such as computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), entertainment systems, and the like, are increasingly taking on communication functions traditionally assigned to telephones. For example, automotive vehicles incorporate telematics to provide communication services to occupants including telephone calls, driver assistance, emergency location, entertainment, and the like.
Telecommunication devices operate in a wide range of environments. These environments can degrade or corrupt sound quality through distortion of the sound signal, addition of unwanted noise, acoustic echo, and the like. In addition, the transmission channel itself may distort the sound signal due to bandwidth limitations, nonlinearities, line echo, sampling, and the like.
Many telecommunication devices incorporate sound enhancement processing to correct or compensate for various sound degrading effects. Often, the optimal place to locate sound enhancement processing is as close to the end of the communication channel as possible. Some sound processing is more optimally placed nearer to the source of the sound or at the beginning of the communication channel. Still other sound processing techniques are better placed within the communication channel itself.
The proliferation of telecommunication devices has created a desire to mix and match various equipment. For example, wired and wireless headsets are available for use with many different types of telecommunications transceivers. As telecommunication devices are made more complex and powerful there is an increasing tendency to incorporate sound enhancement processing on each device. Thus it is likely that sound enhancement efforts will be duplicated on interconnected telecommunication devices that form a common communication channel.